A 22 year old woman made a bad choice while shopping at Macy's Department Store with her friend. The two women entered the fitting room with a pair of black shorts and a Victoria Secret bag. A loss prevention employee took notice of the two women leaving the fitting room with the shorts hidden in the Victoria Secret bag. They exited the store, passing all points of sale without paying for the merchandise. The Hillsborough County Sherriff arrested the women and charged them with One Count, Petit Theft under Fla. Statute 812.014 (3)(a).
Retail theft is one of the most common types of theft. If the value of stolen goods is under $300, the State charges it as a misdemeanor. A person commits theft if he or she knowingly obtains or uses, or endeavors to obtain or use, the property of another with intent to, either temporarily or permanently, deprive the other person of a right to the property or benefit from the property. If convicted, the defendant may receive fines up to $500 and, or, up to 60 days in jail.
At the time, the accused woman was unemployed and looking for work. Having an arrest record would make it even more difficult for her to secure employment in poor economic times. She turned to the experienced Tampa criminal defense lawyers at Musca Law to help her avoid these consequences. With over 100 years of combined legal experience, our firm understands the local court system and defends people against criminal theft charges with aggressive determination.
The client was a first time offender and had never been in trouble with the law before. We used this fact to convince the State prosecutor to dismiss our client's case and put her in an intervention program available to first time offenders. By successfully completing the program the charge of Petit Theft against our client was dropped.
